A predominance of hypertensive heart disease among patients with cardiac disease in Buea, a semi-urban setting, South West Region of Cameroon

OBJECTIVE: The pattern of heart disease is diverse within and among world regions. The little data on the spectrum of heart disease in Cameroon has been so far limited to major cities. We sought to describe the pattern of heart disease in Buea, the South West Region of Cameroon, a semi-urban setting. This was a descriptive cross-sectional study. Between June 2016 and April 2017 the echocardiography register of the Buea Regional Hospital was surveyed. We extracted data on the age, sex and echocardiographic diagnosis. RESULTS: Out of 529 patients who underwent echocardiography, 239 (45.2%) had a definite heart disease. There were 137 (57.3%) females. The mean age was 58 years (range 3-94 years). The most common echocardiographic diagnoses were hypertensive heart disease (43.2%), dilated cardiomyopathies (17.6%), ischemic heart diseases (9.6%), and cor pulmonale (8.8%). Rheumatic heart disease affected 6.7% of the patients. The most common rheumatic heart disease was mitral stenosis followed by mitral regurgitation. Congenital heart disease represented 2.1% and 5 patients (2.1%) had pulmonary hypertension. Hypertensive heart disease is the most common cardiac disease in this semi-urban region in Cameroon. Rheumatic heart disease still affects a sizable proportion of patients. Prevention of cardiac disease in our setting should focus on mass screening, the treatment and control of hypertension.